Off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot who allegedly tried to shut down engines discussed taking mushrooms

NBC, MSN ^ | 10/24/23 | Tom Costello and Jay Blackman and Erik Ortiz and Andrew Blankstein and Dennis Romero

[DallasBiff]

The off-duty pilot accused of trying to bring down an Alaska Airlines flight told investigators he took psychedelic mushrooms 48 hours prior to the incident, had been depressed, and believed he was experiencing a mental breakdown, authorities said.

The off-duty pilot — Joseph Emerson, 44, of California — has since been charged with more than 80 counts of attempted murder, and the FBI is investigating whether he was under the influence when he tried to shut down the plane's engines while sitting in the cockpit of Sunday's flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, officials told NBC News.

[DallasBiff]

I worked at a hotel, whose clientele, was 80% pilots doing re-training or initial training in simulators.

Could be a weird group of people sometimes, also don't understand why a person has to take others with them in their suicide, reminds me of the German pilot who crashed a plane with innocent passengers back in 2015.

[T.B. Yoits]

So... taking mushrooms makes one a deadly threat to others.

Then mushroom takers should be stopped with deadly force.

[Robert DeLong]

That will be remembered as being a very bad trip. Who the heck does mushrooms and then climbs in the cockpit of an airplane?

A fool.

[Robert DeLong]

If he was tripping, he may not have been trying to commit suicide.

I of course have no experience. /sarcasm

But I hear you can sometimes see some weird things when tripping.

Moody Blues - Legend Of A Mind

[bankwalker]

I love that song ...

[DallasBiff]

Well he was not exactly flying, he was in the jump seat, that airline employees use as free seat ,to get somewhere, 99.9% of the time, they don’t mess with the controls.

[tennmountainman]

He should never be allowed to fly another plane again.

[Robert DeLong]

I never threatened anyone. Though I may have been a deadly threat. A drinker can be the same, even a person who is stone cold sober. But their intentions were not meant to be threatening or deadly in any way, shape or form. Just poor decisions of perceptions made while operating or even as a passenger in a vehicle.

But regardless, they pay a penalty, and in the majority of instances, it's a heavy penalty they receive, and rightly so.

[Robert DeLong]

I know he wasn’t flying, and that he was occupying the jump seat, but still, quite a stupid stunt to take shrooms and then climb into a cockpit. Sadly, he will pay a heavy price for his ill advised act.

[Robert DeLong]

Me too. 🙂 👍

[DallasBiff]

I have dealt with many pilots, working in the hotel industry, I would say 90% were nice professional people, the other 10%, weird.

[Robert DeLong]

I used to work the Airlines Pilot Assoc. Most of them partied hearty. So its not surprising that some do drugs too, but his stunt will cost him dearly, and rightly so. Very stupid move on his part.

[Ezekiel]

He thought he was just being a fungi.

Wanted to push some buttons.

The morel of the story is, don’t be a spoil spore.

[SaveFerris]

Oh he won’t. Not legally.

If he ever gets out of prison.

[ALPAPilot]

Suprisingly, the unions, particulary ALPA, have so far been strangely silent. And this is quite a big deal. It was a long fought battle for the universal jumpseat priveleges we currently enjoy. For the majority of pilots, this is the way we get to work, often. I’m sure this will make the TSA look closely at these privileges.

On the flip side, it was a jump seater that help save many on United 232 in Sioux City. And it would have been much better if there were guys on the jumpseat on 9/11.

But this is bad.

[Zathras]

Its the “I have mental problems” defense.
According to his neighbors in Pleasant Valley, CA, he was happy and and was not depressed.